Ohio State hold off Notre Dame to claim first national football title in 10 years
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Instead of having to mull over another collapse, Ohio State can celebrate another national title after holding off a Notre Dame comeback bid on Monday night to walk away with a nailbiter of a 34-23 victory over the Fighting Irish. Will Howard hit big-play receiver Jeremiah Smith for 56 yards on a late third-and-11 to lock down a game that had been a laugher, then turned into something else. Trailing 31-7, Notre Dame scored two touchdowns and two two-point conversions to make it a one-score game late in the fourth quarter.
The Irish stopped Ohio State on the first two plays of the next drive and used their timeouts. But on third down, Howard found Smith in single coverage on the right sideline and dropped his best pass of the season into the hands of the second-team All-American.
JEREMIAH SMITH JUST WON OHIO STATE THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP 😱. pic.twitter.com/bqVarMuswC. It set up a field goal that started the celebration in earnest, closing out a seven-week climb from the depths of a loss to 20-point underdog Michigan to the top of college football. Ohio State will bring their first national title since the 2014 season back to the Horseshoe in Columbus.
Howard, a transfer-portal success story from Kansas State, threw for 231 yards and two scores, but nothing will beat the pass to Smith with everything on the line. The receiver, who had been bottled up by Texas in the semifinals and was fairly quiet for most of this game, finally got loose for the kind of play he’s been making all year. He finished with five catches for 88 yards.
